Shirley Horn was born and raised in Washington, D.C.. Encouraged by her grandmother, an amateur organist, Horn began piano lessons at the age of four. Aged 12, she studied piano and composition at Howard University, later graduating from there in classical music. Horn was offered a place at the Juilliard School, but her family could not afford to send her there. Horn formed her first jazz piano trio when she was 20. Horn's early piano influences were Erroll Garner, Oscar Peterson and Ahmad Jamal, and moving away from her classical background, Horn later said that "Oscar Peterson became my Rachmaninov, and Ahmad Jamal became my Debussy." She then became enamored with the famous U Street jazz area of Washington (largely destroyed in the 1968 riots), sneaking into jazz clubs before she was of legal age.
Horn first achieved fame in 1960, through her association with Miles Davis. Davis' praise had particular resonance in two respects: because he was so highly respected as a musician, and because he rarely offered public praise for fellow musicians at that time. Horn had, though, recorded several songs with violinist Stuff Smith in 1959 both as a pianist and a singer. After her discovery by Davis, she recorded albums on different small labels in the early 1960s, eventually landing contracts with larger labels Mercury Records and Impulse Records. She was popular with jazz critics, but did not achieve significant popular success.
Quincy Jones attempted to make Horn into a pure vocalist in several recording sessions, something he later hinted may have been a mistake. Horn was also disturbed by the changes in popular music in the 1960s following the arrival of The Beatles. Largely rejecting efforts to remake her into a popular singer, she stated: "I will not stoop to conquer."[4] From the late-1960s, she concentrated on raising her daughter Rainy with her husband, Shepherd Deering (whom she had married in 1955), and largely limited her performances to her native Washington, D.C.
Miles Davis made a rare appearance as a sideman on Horn's 1991 album You Won't Forget Me. Although she preferred to perform in small settings, such as her trio, she also recorded with orchestras, as on the 1992 album Here's to Life, the title song (lyrics by Phyllis Molinary, music by Artie Butler) of which became her signature song. A video documentary of Horn's life and music was released at the same time as "Here's To Life" and shared its title. At the time, arranger Johnny Mandel commented that Horn's piano skill was comparable to that of the noted jazz great Bill Evans. A follow-up was made in 2001, named You're My Thrill.
Horn worked with the same rhythm section for 25 years: Charles Ables (bass) and Steve Williams (drums). Don Heckman wrote in the Los Angeles Times (February 2, 1995) about "the importance of bassist Charles Ables and drummer Steve Williams to Horn's sound. Working with boundless subtlety, following her every spontaneous twist and turn, they were the ideal accompanists for a performer who clearly will tolerate nothing less than perfection".
Her albums Here's to Life, Light Out of Darkness (A Tribute to Ray Charles) and I Love You, Paris all reached number one on the Billboard jazz charts.
Due to health problems in the early 2000s, Horn had to cut back on her performances. After 2002, a foot amputation (from complications of diabetes) led her to leave the piano playing to pianist George Mesterhazy. In late 2004, Horn felt able to play piano again, and recorded a live album for Verve, at Manhattan's Au Bar with trumpet player Roy Hargrove, which did not satisfy her.[citation needed] It remains unreleased except for tracks on But Beautiful - The Best of Shirley Horn.
A breast cancer survivor, she had been battling diabetes when she died of complications from the condition, aged 71. She is interred at Ft. Lincoln Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
Horn was nominated for nine Grammy Awards during her career, winning the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance at the 41st Grammy Awards for I Remember Miles, a tribute to her friend and mentor (the album's cover featuring a Miles Davis drawing of them both).
She was officially recognized by the 109th US Congress for "her many achievements and contributions to the world of jazz and American culture", and performed at The White House for several U.S. presidents. Horn was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree from the Berklee College of Music in 2002.
She was awarded the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award in 2005 (the highest honors that the United States bestows upon jazz musicians).
You Don't Know Me
Shirley Horn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And then you say hello
I can hardly speak
My heart is beating so
And anyone can tell
You think you know me well
But you don't know me
That thinks of you at night
Who longs to kiss your lips
And yearns to squeeze you tight
No I'm just a friend
That's all I've ever been
You just don't know me
I never knew the art of making love
Though my heart aches with love for you
Afraid and shy, I let my chance go by
The chance that you might love me too
You give your hand to me
And then you say goodbye
I watch you walk away
Beside the lucky guy
You'll never, never know
The one who loves you so
You just don't know me
I never knew the art of making love
Though my heart aches with love for you
Afraid and shy, I let my chance go by
The chance that you might love me too
You give your hand to me
And then you say goodbye
I watch you walk away
Beside the lucky guy
Who'll never, never know
The one who loves you so
You just don't know me
You'll never, ever know
mmmm, cause you just don't know me
Shirley Horn’s song, “You Don't Know Me,” describes unrequited love between two people where one person wishes they could express their love but instead remains just a friend. The singer communicates the pain of being unseen and unheard in their romantic interest’s eyes despite their attempts at gestures of affection like holding hands and longing for a kiss. The singer feels as though their love is not reciprocated, and they lament the missed opportunity to profess their love. The closing lyrics reiterate the theme - the singer accepts that their love for the other person will go unnoticed and unrequited.
The song's emotional intensity can be felt through the slow, somber pace of the piano accompanying Shirley Horn's vocals. There is a sense of resignation in the music as the singer acknowledges the end of the relationship.
Although the lyrics of "You Don't Know Me" were written by Cindy Walker, it is Ray Charles' iconic cover that popularized the song. Shirley Horn's version is a jazz interpretation of the ballad traditionally performed as a country song, replacing twang with horns, piano, and jazz chords. Horn's version delicately exposes the loneliness of unrequited love, making the emotional pain more palpable.
Line by Line Meaning
You give your hand to me
You offer me your hand as a gesture of greeting
And then you say hello
You greet me with a friendly salutation
I can hardly speak
I am overwhelmed with emotion, making it difficult for me to talk
My heart is beating so
I am experiencing intense feelings of attraction and nervousness
And anyone can tell
It is evident to anyone observing the situation
You think you know me well
You believe that you have a good understanding of who I am
But you don't know me
You are mistaken in thinking that you truly know my thoughts and feelings
Oh you don't know the one
There is another side of me that you are not aware of
That thinks of you at night
I spend my evenings thinking about you
Who longs to kiss your lips
I have a strong desire to kiss your lips
And yearns to squeeze you tight
I ache to hold you close
No I'm just a friend
I am in the role of a platonic friend
That's all I've ever been
I have never expressed my true feelings for you
I never knew the art of making love
I have never been able to express my love for you romantically
Though my heart aches with love for you
I feel a deep and painful longing for you
Afraid and shy, I let my chance go by
My fear and shyness stopped me from taking a chance to express my love for you
The chance that you might love me too
I missed the opportunity to find out if you might have romantic feelings for me
And then you say goodbye
You bid me farewell
I watch you walk away
I observe you as you leave
Beside the lucky guy
You are with another man who is fortunate enough to have your love
You'll never, never know
You will never realize the depth of my love for you
The one who loves you so
I am the one who deeply loves and cares for you
You just don't know me
You don't truly know my feelings and thoughts about you
You'll never, ever know
You will never understand the extent of my love for you
mmmm, cause you just don't know me
Your lack of understanding about my true feelings for you is the reason why
Contributed by Amelia G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.